The origin of sword

The scope of sword in China culture and western culture is different. Because there were only two blades and a straight knife in ancient western countries, the knife was also defined as a kind of sword by westerners. Although Saber refers to saber and Falchion refers to machete, they are also included in the swords of western culture.

In China culture, sword and knife are two different weapons. Sword refers to "double-edged straight blade" and knife refers to "single-edged curved blade".

See the famous sword of China and the history of China and Gu Jian.

In China, there are knives and swords, but in Japan, there are no knives and swords, so in Japan, knives and swords are interlinked.

In eastern and western civilizations, swords are weapons with higher status. In ancient China, the sword was called "the king of hundreds of battles" and was often regarded as a noble ornament. From emperors to literati, people like to wear swords to show their identity. In addition, the sword is also regarded as a ritual prop. For example, in Taoist ceremonies in China, the sword is often used as a tool to subdue demons. In Europe, swords are used to canonize knights and knights, and this habit has been passed down to this day.

Some psychological theories mention that the sword symbolizes the human penis; The worship and love of sword often implies a certain degree of penis worship.

history

Bronze Age. See COPPER AGE

Man has been using edged weapons since the Bronze Age. As early as the 2nd century BC, humans could make weapons similar to daggers. In the bronze age, because the tensile strength of copper could not be broken, swords over 90 cm were hardly seen. People need to find a metal harder than copper to make a longer sword. At first, the handle was just a simple handle to prevent the user from being cut by the blade.

The swords of Mediterranean, Black Sea and West Asia in Europe are typical willow leaves, while those in Northern Europe are spiral.

There are historical records of casting swords in Shang Dynasty in China, and the remains of bronze swords have also been found in archaeology. At that time, it was usually used as an auxiliary weapon under long weapons. However, in areas with many rivers, such as wuyue, sword was the main weapon, and most of the famous swords in the Spring and Autumn Period came from these areas.

Iron Age

Iron swords became popular in the Iron Age in13rd century BC. Iron swords were first used by Hittites, Greek Mycenae and primitive Celtic civilizations in the early Iron Age (8th century BC). Iron swords are produced on a large scale because they make full use of raw materials. The early iron sword was much worse than the later steel blade sword. Because of its brittleness, the iron sword is not even as good as some bronze swords. However, the advantages of iron sword are simple production and high material utilization rate, which makes it possible for the whole army to use this metal weapon (although the Egyptian army was equipped with bronze swords as early as the Bronze Age).

Later, blacksmiths found that when melting iron, adding some carbon, such as charcoal, can make a stronger alloy. There are many ways to make swords all over the world, and the most widely used method is casting.

In ancient Greece and Rome, the iron sword was popular in the rest of Persia and Sassanian dynasty.

Greek sword Xiphos and Roman dagger Gladius are typical swords in this period, usually 60 to 70 cm in length. The sword named Spata appeared in the late Roman Empire (during this period, Spatalius, an aristocratic class who used Spata, appeared in Constantinople). At this point, the era of long swords came.

China's Iron Sword appeared with the development of iron smelting technology since the Warring States Period in the 3rd century BC. At this time, the famous swords of Chu and South Korea (the name of a country in China during the Warring States Period) spread all over the world, ranging in length from 80 cm to 140 cm. The Han Dynasty was the period when the sword was most widely used as a weapon of war in China. In the middle of the Western Han Dynasty, the famous sword with a ring head appeared, and the Eastern Han Dynasty completely replaced the popular sword in the Western Han Dynasty. After the Han Dynasty, the sword gradually withdrew from the mainstream weapon on the battlefield in China and was replaced by a knife.

Medieval period

Spata sword was very popular during the Great Migration and even when it completely entered the Middle Ages. Spatha sword in Vendel period was decorated with Germanic pattern (not Germanic imitation Roman pattern). During the Viking period, more standardized swords were produced, but the types of swords were still based on Spata.

It was not until the Norman sword of 1 1 century that Quilon and the Cross Guardian were born. This cross-shaped sword was used by the Crusaders from 12 to 13. The change was mainly to make the round head of the handle sharper. The attack mode of these swords is set to chop, but the chopped points on the armor are also strengthened.

The ring-headed sword, which appeared in the Western Han Dynasty, was popular in the Three Kingdoms, the Jin Dynasty, the Southern and Northern Dynasties and the Sui Dynasty. It was not until the Tang Dynasty that tangdao (also known as the horizontal knife) improved and developed it. ). South Korea's ring-headed broadsword was developed from China's sword, which was very famous during the Three Kingdoms period in South Korea, and the recorded Japanese sword in the 9th century was also originated from the horizontal knife in the Tang Dynasty in China.

Late Middle Ages to Renaissance

From 14 to 16 century, with the change of armor, new swords appeared more and more frequently. The main change is the lengthening of hilt and body, which leads to the appearance of two-handed sword. In the15th century, this two-handed sword was called Langeschwert (German) or spadone (Italian), which means long sword. The sword is becoming more and more popular because of its large attack range and enhanced stabbing ability. From 15 to 16 th century, there were a lot of battle manuals introducing how to use two-handed swords. Another change is the appearance of a barbed sword specially used for armor. The weak part of the armor is where the metal plates are connected. These places are connected by rope or leather, and the barbed sword can be easily pierced without being bounced off. Therefore, the stab sword is also all the rage.

16th century, Germanic sword doppelganger? Nder (now renamed as Zweih? Nder (meaning with both hands) ended the growing trend of swords (mainly due to the decline of armor and the rise of light firearms), and the one-handed sword, which prevailed in the early Middle Ages, became popular again.

This period is the most popular, the highest status and the best effect period of sword in melee combat. At the same time, the decisive role of sword in war has declined with the progress of science and technology. However, the sword is still the best choice for ordinary people to defend themselves.

In the Ming Dynasty, in order to resist the Japanese pirates, a series of Japanese Dao and Miao Dao were copied from Japanese Dao in China. At this time, China people almost regarded the double-edged sword as a self-defense weapon, and almost all the weapons used on the battlefield were knives.

Modern Times

Some people think that the lightsaber evolved from the Spanish sword of Espada Ropala in the16th century. The biggest difference between lightsaber and previous swords is that it is no longer a military weapon, but a civilian defense tool. The lightsaber and Italian Schiavone sword transformed the cross-shaped armguard into a cup-shaped armguard. From 17 to 18 century, the shorter sabre became popular all over Europe and became the first choice accessory for the rich and officers. Lightsabers and sabers were quite popular in the18th century.

In the colonial era, Europeans began to imitate the single-edged sword of hostile peoples in the Middle East or Central Asia, which is called sabre or sabre, and it is still defined as a branch of sword.

When the sword went out of fashion, the walking stick took its place. Like a sword hidden in a cane. La canne, a French martial art, uses a walking stick with a sword as a weapon.

When the sword is about to withdraw from the historical stage, its role has retreated from the samurai to the waist of the civilians. In the past, the pivotal position in the war has been replaced by firearms. Even as a personal self-defense weapon, the sword lost its advantage in the early19th century and was replaced by a portable pistol.

For a long time after the First World War, the sword was a necessary equipment for the army. However, during World War II, except for cold weapons such as swords, other battles were completed by guns.

At present, the sword is still in use, but it only appears in the uniforms and formal attire of military commanders, or in the heavy cavalry equipment reserved by many countries. Sword is also used in some ceremonies in the west.